Gov. 'Strickwell' sets the agenda

COLUMBUS – Ohio Gov. Ken Blackwell has named a Columbus attorney to spearhead an effort to eliminate regulations that hamper the growth of business in the state. Scott North, 48, will serve as the Governor’s Special Representative on Regulatory Reform. “To give Ohio a competitive advantage, we must identify and eliminate inefficient and drawn-out regulatory processes and turn to a common-sense approach to regulation,” Blackwell said.
The announcement followed Blackwell’s endorsement of GOP legislative leaders’ plan to seek a Medicaid “buy-in” waiver that would allow disabled Ohioans to earn greater incomes while still receiving Medicaid coverage, saving the state money in the long run. “He’s interested in working very closely with the legislature to address the issue,” said the governor’s spokesman.

OK, OK. You caught me. Republican Ken Blackwell isn’t Ohio’s governor. Democrat Ted Strickland, who beat him handily in November, is. Otherwise, every word of the above item is true. That points out an interesting phenomenon in the Statehouse these days: Much of the state’s policy-making business is proceeding as though a Republican had been elected governor. Aside from that silly muscle-flexing veto over lead-paint lawsuit limits that’s likely to get overturned by the courts, Strickland is avoiding high-profile initiatives so far that articulate a distinctly Democratic agenda.

In fact, some in Strickland’s own party are miffed that he took away Democrats’ chance to get some partisan “payback” for 16 years of Republican judicial appointments. His first major act was to create an independent (though with a nominal 3-2 Democratic advantage) judicial nominating commission, plucking that plum perk from the palms of county party bosses. What’s next? An independent board to redraw legislative districts and take away Democrats’ new-found advantage in that process? Maybe. Talks are in the works.

A recent statement by House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering, on Strickland’s approach to fiscal issues is telling: “We don’t see anything that he’s said that would be substantially different from something we might have seen from (former) Gov. (Bob) Taft.” Ouch.

Of course, trying to make government as efficient, transparent and even-handed as possible is not – or rather, should not be – the province of one party. The business-regulation and Medicaid reforms were in Strickland’s campaign platform last fall, but they won't turn out nearly like a Gov. Blackwell or Gov. Taft would have wanted. Psychologist Strickland’s approach, after the scandals and nasty campaigns of the past year, may have a purposeful "healing" element to it. And yes, he's only been in office a couple of months.

Still, it makes you wonder if some Ohio Democrats are beginning to think they elected a DINO – Democrat In Name Only.